Boudoir Miss Regina

The new color pallet of my bedroom!



crystal clear



aqueduct

  

black of night

   

cast iron

   


contented                convivial yellow

 



 







my new bed with new duvet, pillows and some wonderful textures!



Window/Wall piece with fall leaves and wood design



new lamp



 It is a little different than this year's Pantone color, honeysuckle, but pink has never truly been a large part of my style. I guess I am out of style for the year!  Honeysuckle might appear for me in a swimsuit or two this coming summer but I do not see it going much further than that!  Love the color just not for me!

Honeysuckle



And according to the new 2011 Charles Luck Perspectives I fall somewhere in the "understated" and "blend" trends with a little heritage and vintage thrown in to taste.  They haven't released quite yet but will in the next few weeks and I will be sure to share. 





Tinkering Garage Gone Global

What exactly is an interdisciplinary design studio? According to Elizabeth Diller, Ricardo Scofidio, and Charles Renfro the 60 plus person firm has “realized work of civic and cultural significance through a practice that straddles design, the visual arts, and the performing arts.”



Part of the DS+R firm with Elizabeth Diller, Ricardo Scofidio and Charles Renfro at the bottom right in black at the recently finished High Line in NY

 The group prides themselves on being indifferent to specific terminology and disciplinary conventions. Their studio is similar to hands on tinkering garage ranging in all levels of expertise. The product of the firm’s experimentation ranges from performance art to built form, but always questions boundaries of cultural and social norms. I typically refer to them as artistic inventors for lack of any one defining term, and I imagine the group would not like to be pigeonholed into any one specific category. The index on the firm’s website categorizes each work into a loose grouping for easier navigation. http://www.dsrny.com/

The introduction of Diller Scofidio +Renfro into my architectural vocabulary originates with the Blur Building. The principals refer to this project as“architecture of atmosphere.” In simple terms it is a platform built on Lake Neuchatel, Switzerland that uses natural and manmade forces to create a fine water mist fog as the defining feature or enclosure to the “building.” The Blur Building essentially is a 50,000 square foot experiment redefining the term “built form” while creating a building that entices all of the senses simultaneously and directly. There are more theoretical and mechanical processes than can be inferred, but are meant to be hidden from the voyeurs.

Exposition pavilion: Swiss Expo Yverdon Le Bains (Lake Neuchatel) 2002

I highlight the Blur Building as an example not only because it was my first encounter but it incorporates built form, sensory experiences, and experimentation and building of systems. Some of their recent works include the Landscape Master plan of the High Line in New York, the Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Expansions, and the Be Yourself performance.

Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Renovation, DC

High Line, NY

This is a quick introduction to Diller Scofidio + Renfro is meant to spark curiosity and hopefully paint an accurate picture of what a modern inventors look like. I would encourage anyone who is remotely interested to check out the firm’s unique website for more insight into what they are all about. I hold them as an inspiration and have learned two important ideals from studying DS+R’s work: nothing is impossible until you have exhausted every idea and material, and you can exercise your voice through more than speech.

Auld Lang Syne

Where do New Year’s Resolutions come from?

Believe it or not they originated in 153 BC from Roman mythology. In fact, January is named after the Roman god, Janus, god of beginnings and the guardian of doors and entrances. Only cultures that use the 365 day calendar celebrate New Years festivities on January 1st, though some form of New Year’s traditions are integral to many societies. In western civilization gifts have always been exchanged even though the specific date of celebration for the new year has gone through some changes.

Ancient Roman coin depicting two faced god Janus

We carry on the tradition of gift giving on December 25th and hold off making resolutions until January 1st. Making a resolution was formerly a tribute to god Janus in celebration of being given a new beginning. A personal resolution trends in the betterment of ones’ life. Many times exercise and/or health ranks at the top of most popular resolutions, hence the reason there is such a rapid increase of gym goers in January (that and the fact that everyone has just indulged in multiple holiday feasts!)

Health and money continue to top the charts as the most popular resolutions, however it is interesting to see how the trendy resolutions change from year to year.

Charts of top new years resolutions taken from 43things.com

Some Charles Luck ideas and outlooks for 2011.

“I have always liked the idea of personal goals but never really had many new years resolutions. My belief is anyone can start a goal anytime they want. The more you share your goals (with significant other, friends, co-workers) the more likely you can achieve them. Putting your goals in writing increases success as well. All this can definitely work with NY resolutions.

As for the goals themselves – balancing life is key for me. I think of it in terms of marriage, friends, family, career, spiritual, education, community and health. “

~ Bill Eubank



“My New Year’s resolution is to spend more quality time with my significant other. Make an effort to find time to share things with each other and invest in listening. Turn the tv, blackberry, ipad, ipod, computer, etc. off and enjoy each other’s company and remember why we fell in love.”

~ Heather Reid



“My personal trouble with new year’s resolutions is that my effort waxes and wanes before ultimately fizzling out a few months later. This year I have decided to set a specific target date of May 15th. On this day I will be running the Pittsburgh half marathon. Not only does this give me a reason to get back into exercising, stay in shape, get what I pay for, but also a travel destination to one of my favorite cities! (I figure by publicly proclaiming this to many co-workers, friends and family I have locked myself in to being held accountable by many.)”

~ Meghan Meyers



To all of the eLan vital  Blog readers have a safe and prosperous New Year and see you in 2011!!!!

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,

and never brought to mind?

Should auld acquaintance be forgot

and days of auld lang syne?

(auld lang syne = Scottish for good old days!)

The most wonderful time of the year

Fall is my favorite season or as Luke would say "It's the most wonderful time of the year!" It always makes me feel rejuvinated to list all of the things about fall and all of the traditions that take place during the season, there is a lot to give thanks for.... we all know that it is also a crazy time of year as well!

 without further adu..

I love that the humidity is gone and the breeze gains a sort of cripsness, the amazing colors associated with the season - the color of the leaves against a blue sky while driving down a country road, MUMS! the colors of these fall flowers closely matches the leaves, of course boots of all shapes and sizes, sweaters, hoodies & sweatpants, open windows letting the smell of the season into the house and not having to use air or heat but being able to cuddle up under a warm blanket, Football, Oktoberfest beer, homemade applesauce and thick soup, Ham Pot Pie  Thanksgiving giving way to 4 wheeling in the mud but if for nothing else the getting together of everyone for that reason alone... to get together, pumpkin pie, camping - it has been too long since I have seen Beaver damn and been to the water tower!, Halloween with all the trimmings of haunted houses scary stories around a fire and apple cider spiked with captain morgan..... or not. hay rides, and of course birthdays ;)

Love Triangle

I know I said I was in love before...but is there anything really wrong about having one house in SIngapore and one in Kona, Hawaii? I love to travel.  I have never been either place, but am in love.

The Kona Residence presented by Contemporist architect: Belzberg Architects  Who else?

It's a little crazy and fun with lots of detail and love of materials.  I will say my favorite is the bedroom, but the patio area is amazing too.  ahhhh Hawaii.....

Description by architects:
Nestled between cooled lava flows, the Kona residence situates its axis not with the linearity of the property but rather with the axiality of predominant views available to the site. Within the dichotomy of natural elements and geometric hardscape the residence attempts to integrate both the surrounding views of volcanic mountain ranges to the east and ocean horizons westward. The program is arranged as a series of pods distributed throughout the property, each having its own unique features and view opportunities. The pods are programmatically assigned as two sleeping pods with common areas, media, master suite and main living space. A central axis becomes the organizational and focal feature for the entire house, connecting each of the pods through an exterior gallery corridor. To help maintain the environmental sensitivity of the house, 2 separate arrays of roof mounted photovoltaic panels offset the residence energy usage while the choice of darker lava stone help heat the pool water via solar radiation. Rain water collection and redirection to 3 drywells that replenish the aquifer are implemented throughout the property. Reclaimed teak timber from older barns and train tracks are recycled for the exterior of the home. Together with stacked and cut lava rock, the two materials form a historically driven medium embedded in Hawaiian tradition. 3-D modeling and digital fabrication through CNC machinery was incorporated to further enhance traditional elements in a contemporary arrangement. Local basket weaving culture was the inspiration for the entry pavilion which reenacts the traditional gift upon arrival ceremony. CNC milled ceilings and screens throughout the house continue the abstract approach to traditional Hawaiian wood carving.

some favorite phrases

Genius is more often found in a cracked pot than in a whole one.


~ E. B. White



You must have chaos within yourself to give birth to a dancing star.

~Friedrich Nietzsche



Anyone who lives within their means suffers from lack of imagination.

~Oscar Wilde



He allowed himself to be swayed by his conviction that human beings are not born once and for all on the day their mothers give birth to them, but that life obliges them over and over again to give birth to themselves.

~Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Tim Walker mi amour